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"When I was a child, researching a new topic meant walking to the local library with a list of subjects, an effort that could consume half a day. Back then, kno
by jclulow 2y ago
"When I was a child, researching a new topic meant walking to the local library with a list of subjects, an effort that could consume half a day. Back then, knowledge wasn’t cheap or easily accessible."
It was literally a free library, open to every member of the public.
- giantg2 2y agoYou're forgetting opportunity cost.
- SoftTalker 2y agoAlso that the child who spent half a day at the library researching a subject probably learned something. Having an AI simply do all that for you teaches you nothing.
- edoceo 2y agoLots of value in the research process, multiple sources, slow reasoning. VS uploading Kung Fu to your brain.
- pitched 2y agoOur brains are built to learn and never stop doing it. It’s always “what” are we learning, not “if” we are. The use of AI is absolutely teaching something.
- Guthur 2y agoYeah, to become dependent.
- borgdefenser 2y agoI still spend half the day at the library sometimes because I just love the library. To say language models teach a person nothing is just completely absurd. All learning materials really work in conjunction. The books I have read give me better questions to ask the models that lead to more books that lead to more questions. Then layer on top of that the deep research models. It is just an incredible time for learning.
- dharmab 2y agoMaybe it was better in big cities but when I was a kid researching papers on niche topics was tough because the local library had few books, mostly older ones, and I had to have my parents drive me there because it was too far to bike... When we got 24/7 internet it was a game changer, it was like turning on a tap of knowledge on every topic. Of course the signal to noise ratio was higher back then...
- crystal_revenge 2y agoYour public library didn’t have inter-library loan? Most public libraries have always been able to get you books not in their collection, you just have to ask.
- spooneybarger 2y agoMine in a deeply rural area did not. Going to a library as an urban dweller would imagine was an all day affair. We generally did it a few times a year but that was part of a larger trip to go to "the better hospital" or what not.
- rob-olmos 2y agoAdding to the GP & sibling: Even in Los Angeles with some of the bigger libraries the IT/programming books were on the older (outdated?) side.. The more modern material was at the book stores like Barnes, Borders, or another one at the mall (I don't remember if it was B Dalton, Walden, or something else).. thankfully I could skateboard there after school or work and read them there for the evening since I couldn't afford them. Getting the internet and SNR of content back then was a game changer to me too.
- ripped_britches 2y agoRare earth minerals are also free by this definition
- softwaredoug 2y agoI had the experience of needing to scan analog, historical original sources on microfiche for my history degree. You get really good at a kind of gestalt linear search through materials. Tricks like glancing at the first / last sentence of paragraphs for the general topic, then anticipating what the author is _probably_ saying in the next few pages, really helps you get through a lot of content fast, almost to the point of reading on an intuitive, unconscious level.
- musicale 2y ago> It was literally a free library, open to every member of the public It is (or was?) possible for libraries to build reasonably durable collections of physical books that they can manage as they choose, shelf space permitting (and if not, books can be sold to make space). But as publishing shifts from physical to digital there is no first sale doctrine for ebooks, so they are controlled by license agreements from publishers.